Best Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

These are the Best Chewy Gingerbread Cookies that are made for Christmas cut-out cookies! Perfect for all holiday gatherings and for gift-giving.

I have a confession to make: we make these chewy gingerbread cookies every single year. Every single year, I take photographs of them and share them on social media. And every single year, I neglect to post them on this blog.

Until now!

Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

At long last, I am finally posting my recipe for Chewy Gingerbread Cookies. The kids and I have made a LOT of gingerbread cookies over the years. A. LOT. And this is the recipe that has won out over all other recipes.

Inspired by two different gingerbread cookie recipes from All Recipes and Martha Stewart, I’ve tweaked how we make these over the years. The recipe I am sharing here is the one we have made the last two or three years. We love it!

These gingerbread cookies aren’t the crisp, crunchy kind. This recipe has brown sugar, in addition to granulated white sugar, which makes the cookies soft and chewy. Just the way me and the kids like them (and apparently many of our happy friends & family who have had these!)

They are SO GOOD.

The recipe makes three to four dozen cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters. Perfect for bringing to any holiday party!

What are your favorite cookie cutter shapes to use for holiday cut-out cookies? I’ve found that these shapes are excellent to decorate, especially when you’ve got kids helping:

trees

gingerbread people

snowflakes

stockings

These chewy gingerbread cookies will stay fresh at room temperature if stored in an airtight container for 3-5 days. You can refrigerate these for about a week, and you can freeze undecorated cookies for up to two months.

Chewy Gingerbread Cookies Recipe

Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

These chewy gingerbread cookies are delicious all year round but are great for holidays!

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together dry ingredients - flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices - until well blended. Set aside.

In a stand mixer, cream together softened butter and both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.

Add the molasses and egg and mix until combined.

Add dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Form dough into a disc and wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove chilled dough from the refrigerator and roll out onto a lightly floured surface. Continue rolling out until dough is approximately 1/4" thick all around.

Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes. Place cookies about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets and bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool at room temperature for about 10 minutes on the baking sheets before transferring to cooking racks and cooling completely before icing.

Notes

As with all cookie recipes, I recommend rotating pans halfway through baking for even baking.

NOTE: If your cookies start to get crunchy, store them in an airtight container at room temperature, and they should soften.